Stepping into the past was strange, I immediately saw Impa on arrival and she nodded at me. "At last. I've been expecting you, Link. You are doubtless overwhelmed, so I will explain things as simply as I can. This is the Temple of Hylia, thought it will come to be known as the Sealed Temple sometime in the future. You stand in the past, ages before your own time. Here the goddess, Hylia, has only just sealed away Demise..... And little time has passed since the goddess sent the outcropping of rock into the sky that would one day become Skyloft. It is true to its name. You have passed through the Gate of Time to an era in the distant past. You will have many questions. But for now, you must proceed back through the great doors behind you. It is there that the person you've risked life and blood to defend wait for you."
I smiled, knowing within the next few minutes I'd get to see my sister again. I thanked Impa and made my way to the doors behind her and walked through them. As I walked into the room, I heard the soft harp and I smiled. Zelda turned around and smiled at me as I did at her. "You've come so far, Link... I'm glad you made it. I imagine Impa filled you in. We've traveled very far from home.... to the distant past. In this era, the wounds inflicted on the land during the battle between the goddess and demon king known as Demise have not yet healed. All the fairy tales about that war we heard growing up in Skyloft from Father.... Incredible as it may seem, they appear to be all too real. I think it's time you learned the whole story. Let me try to explain....." She said to me.
"The old gods created a supreme power that gave anyone who possessed it the ability to shape reality and fulfill any desire. They called it The Triforce. In his thirst to make the world his own, Demise readied a massive army of monsters for war. He sought to take the Triforce for himself by force. The goddess feared for her people. She used her power to send both them and the Triforce into the sky on a slice of earth she cut away from the land. This floating rock became the new home of our people. In time, it came to be known as Skyloft. After a long and fierce battle, the goddess, Hylia, succeeded in sealing away Demise. However, soon after the demon king was imprisoned, it became clear that the seal would not hold long against his fearsome power. Hylia had suffered grave injuries in her battle with the demon king. She knew that if he broke free again, there would be no stopping him.
And if the demon king were to free himself, it would mean the end of the world for all beings of this land. In order to put an end to the demon king, Hylia devised two separate plans and set them both into motion." I stood, mouth agape as Zelda to walk towards me. "First, she created Fi. She made the spirit that resides in your to serve a single purpose: to assist her chosen hero on his mission, that's you dear brother." She smiled softly. "Her second plan.... was to abandon her divine form and transfer her soul to the body of a mortal. She made this sacrifice, as you have likely guessed, so that the supreme power created by the old gods could one day be used. For while the supreme power of the Triforce was created by gods, all of its power can never be wielded by one. Knowing this power was her last and only hope, the goddess gave up her divine powers and her immortal form.
You've probably figured our by now, haven't you, Link?" She was right, I had. My dear sister, my best friend was the goddess Hylia reincarnated as a mortal. I nodded with tears in my eyes. "Yeah, I have. There's a reason we're siblings and grew up together if not by blood, by fate. Because I'm the chosen hero and my sister is the goddess reborn as a mortal. The day of the ceremony, Ghirahim's tornado tossed me out of the sky and down to the world below. I was nearly captured by the demonic forces, but I was rescued at the last moment by the old woman who live in the Sealed Grounds. I had no memory at all of my existence as Hylia, but she explained it to me. She helped me to remember who I was....and what I had to do. I set out to pray at the goddess statues located in each temple across the land. Each statue stirred up memories within me. After I visited them all, Impa, an agent of the goddess, led me here.... to the past."
She stepped closer to me, smiling. "....All of this is part of the same great effort to prevent the revival of Demise. Stripped of his true physical form by the seal that binds him, he takes the shape of an abomination. But even in his hideous state, he's more than capable of devouring this land if we allow him to do what he desires. We must stop him from freeing himself from the seal that imprisons him. At any cost.... That is why I intend to remain here in this time and place.... To sustain the seal as best as I can. As long as I continue this vigil, we may be able to prevent the demon king from fully reviving himself in our own time." I gasped as she looked down. "I must maintain the seal that Hylia--rather, that I--created so long ago and keep it strong for as long as I am able. With the memories of my former life returning to me, I can see now that this is my purpose." I couldn't believe it, was this it? Are we never going to be a family again together in Skyloft? Is Robert never going to see Zelda or myself again after this?
"No, Zelda I want us to go home together. I want things to go back the way they were, just us as siblings with Robert. You and I at the Knight Academy and all of this is just a bad dream, none of it's real the fairytales are just fairytales." I said with tears in my eyes and a crack in my voice as Zelda looked at me. "Link, please don't make this any harder that it already is. I want us to go home too but we can't. Our world, our home is in danger. Link, the goddess created Fi and the great blade she's a part of for very specific reasons. For the task of standing against Demise in the monstrous form he now assumes rest solely on you shoulders. No one else can wield that blade, only you. Back in our own time, you've already driven him back into his prison twice now and I can't thank you enough for that, Link. During your long journey, you've grown so much. You learned wisdom from solving devious puzzles and traps. You gained power by honing and tempering both yourself and your sword. And by overcoming the trials set before you by the goddess, you've found true courage.
Now that those qualities reside in you, you are worthy of wielding the power the old gods left behind for our kind. You can claim the Triforce." Zelda held out her hand for me to take which I gladly did, slipping my hand into hers and kneeling before her as she began to speak. "Valiant hero, you have endured many hardships and journeyed far in you quest to reach this place. Along you travels you have found wisdom, power, and courage, and for this I shall bless your sword with the goddess's power. May it give you and your sword the strength to drive back the abomination that threatens this land." As I held Zelda's hand, the glowing triangle which had been appearing after I obtained each sacred flame, now it reappeared on the back of my hand fully. I looked up at Zelda smiling. "The mark you see upon the back of your hand is proof that you are the hero of legend and that within you dwells sacred powers. It is the mark of the Triforce."
Now everything made sense. Every time I saw this triangle I wanted to know what it represented. Now I know, I know what it mean, what it's purpose is, what my purpose is and what my sister's purpose is. "Stand now, Link. Draw your sword." I got up from my knees and drew my sword, as I raised it the wings expanded at the sides and the blade revealed its truest form, as it bore the Triforce mark in the middle of the blade showing it had been blessed by the goddess. Zelda turned away from me and I could tell she was upset about something as that was her trademark when she was upset. "Link, before I say another word, I feel like I owe you an apology. Your my brother and I should and I will be honest with you. You see, the mark of the Triforce on your hand is a symbol of the greatest power in this world. If you can obtain the actual Triforce, we will have the power to vanquish Demise once and for all.
The problem is, among the countless souls in this world, only a select few-- those with an unbreakable spirit-- can wield its might. It's impossible to know the true reason why the old gods created the Triforce. But I have a theory of my own. The gods created the Triforce, yet they specifically designed it so that their own kind could never use its power. Somehow, I think that may have been their way of giving hope to all the mortal beings in the land..... Which brings us back to you. To face Demise and give the land hope, the goddess, Hylia, needed someone with an unbreakable spirit. That someone is you, Link. But spirit alone wasn't enough. You had go overcome many trials and awaken the hero within yourself so that you could wield that supreme power. And so Hylia..... I mean, and so I..... I knew that if it meant saving your sister you would throw yourself headfirst into any danger, without even a moment's doubt..... I.... I used you.
I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for pulling you into all of this, Link. I know you just wanted to bring me home so we could be a family again, and you know what, you're a great hero and an even better brother. I couldn't have asked for anyone better. But despite that, you have to understand this is a war, and the fate of the land hangs in the balance. I need your strength to tip the scales in our favor.... I need my brother's help which is why I must do this. To ensure the seal holds, I will remain in here in this time.... deep in sleep for thousands of years." No I couldn't leave her here, not now, not after all this.
"Zelda...." "No, dear brother..... I can't say it enough Link, I'm so sorry for the way I had to involve you in this. But until my memory of things before our lifetime returned to me, I had no idea we were fated to carry such a heavy destiny. Before all this, I was happy just spending my days hanging around with my brother in Skyloft, my best friend. I wanted that feelings to last forever." A light began to envelope her, I ran towards her I couldn't be done yet. I still wanted to say things. I clambered the stairs in haste as the light got brighter and a crystal imprisoned her. "No! Zelda!" I slapped my hand against it, wanting to get her out, wanting not be done yet. "While it's true that I am Hylia reborn, I'm still our father's daughter and you sister.... I'm still your Zelda." I continued to slap my hand against the crystal. "When Demise is finally gone, there will be no more need for the seal that binds him, and then I'll be able to wake up. So, I'm going to ask you a favor."
I nodded tears in my eyes. "Anything, Zelda." I smiled. "Sleepyhead, ever since we were kids, I'd always be the one to wake you up when you sleep in. But this time, when all of this is over, will you come wake me up?" I nodded vigorously. "Of course, Zelda. I promise!" The crystal brightened and she was asleep. I smiled, nodding at the crystal as I left the room and past Impa I went back to the present.